IGNACE – A faulty employment contract is proving costly for the Township of Ignace.
The provincial Court of Appeals has rejected the township’s appeal of a Superior Court of Justice decision awarding former Ignace employee Karen Dufault $157,000 in damages for wrongful dismissal.
Reached Thursday, Ignace chief administrative officer Aaron Gullins and Mayor Kim Baigrie said the municipality has no comment on the appeals court’s decision.
The matter is in the hands of the township’s legal team, said Baigrie.
Dufault was employed as the township’s youth engagement coordinator from Jan. 31, 2022, until her termination without cause on Jan. 26 of the following year – nearly two years before the term of her employment contract was to end.
The municipality gave Dufault two weeks’ salary as severance pay, but she argued in court that she was entitled to 101 weeks’ pay because the termination clause in her contract was illegal and unenforceable.
Superior Court Justice Helen Pierce agreed and on Feb. 16, 2023, awarded Dufault $157,000 – 101 weeks’ worth of pay and benefits – in damages.
The township appealed, arguing the contract’s termination clause complied with Ontario’s Employment Standards Act.
A three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals ruled last month that Pierce didn’t err in her decision.
In addition to the damages awarded by Pierce, the appeals judges ruled Dufault should be reimbursed for her costs relating to the township’s appeal.
